Best Apple container Alternatives in 2026
Updated
20 apps from container engines ranked against Apple container on the same published basis.
- 1Apple container vs BuildKit
- 2Apple container vs Docker Desktop
- 3Apple container vs Apptainer
- 4Apple container vs Incus
- 5Apple container vs Podman
- 6Apple container vs containerd
- 7Apple container vs crun
- 8Apple container vs gVisor
- 9Apple container vs LXD
- 10Apple container vs Buildah
- 11Apple container vs Kata Containers
- 12Apple container vs Moby
- 13Apple container vs ocijail
- 14Apple container vs Mirantis Container Runtime
- 15Apple container vs runc
- 16Apple container vs SingularityCE
- 17Apple container vs Sysbox
- 18Apple container vs youki
- 20Apple container vs balenaEngine
- 21Apple container vs Charliecloud
Apple container alternatives compared
| # | App | Score | Free plan | From | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BuildKit | 7.3 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 2 | Docker Desktop | 7.3 | Free plan | $9/mo | Linux, Mac, Web, Windows |
| 3 | Apptainer | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 4 | Incus | 7.2 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 5 | Podman | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 6 | containerd | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted, Windows |
| 7 | crun | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 8 | gVisor | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 9 | LXD | 7.0 | Free plan | $2.08/mo | API, Linux, self-hosted, Web |
| 10 | Buildah | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, self-hosted |
| 11 | Kata Containers | 6.8 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 12 | Moby | 6.6 | No | — | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 13 | ocijail | 5.9 | No | — | self-hosted |
| 14 | Mirantis Container Runtime | 5.8 | No | — | Linux, Windows |
| 15 | runc | 5.8 | No | — | Linux |
| 16 | SingularityCE | 5.8 | No | — | Linux |
| 17 | Sysbox | 5.8 | No | — | Linux |
| 18 | youki | 5.8 | No | — | Linux |
| 20 | balenaEngine | 5.7 | No | — | Linux |
| 21 | Charliecloud | 5.7 | No | — | Linux |
Make your app an alternative to Apple container
See the priceThe sponsored alternative slot on this page is labelled Sponsored.
Questions about Apple container alternatives
What is the best alternative to Apple container?
BuildKit, number 1 in container engines with a score of 7.3 out of 10. The others here: Docker Desktop, Apptainer, Incus and 16 more.
What is the best free alternative to Apple container?
BuildKit is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 11 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How are these alternatives ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes: documentation depth, a free tier and the platforms it runs on.